Indonesia made it two in succession in the Southeast Asian Men’s Volleyball League (SEA V. League) Second Leg at the City of Santa Rosa Multi-Purpose Complex in Laguna after 3-0 win against hosts Philippines on Saturday to next face off against Thailand in their last match which will determine the eventual winners.
World No.68 Indonesia, defending and successive three-time Southeast Asian Games gold medallists fresh from winning the first leg title on their home soil at Padepokan Voli Jenderal Polisi Kunarto Gymnasium in Jakarta last week, got their second leg campaign off to a flying start on Friday with dramatic 3-1 victory against Vietnam.
On Saturday, Indonesia sealed their second win in the three-day, round-robin tournament following their exceptional 25-20, 25-22, 25-20 victory against Philippines.
Dimas Saputra, who tallied massive 22 points, with 21 kills and one block in their previous match against Vietnam, Farhan Halim and Hendra Kurniawan remained major forces in helping lift Indonesia the straight-set victory.
Despite putting up a brave fight against the formidable Indonesians, Philippines, powered by Bryan Bagunas and Marck Espejo, regarded as two of the country’s top spikers, and rising star Steven Charles Rotter, who landed the Best Opposite Spiker in the first leg, found the visitors too hot to handle to succumb to two losses in a row in front of their home fans at the venue.
The Philippines, which lost them all in the first leg to return with the fourth place, will seek their first win on home soil on Sunday, the final day of the tournament, when they are set to have their last clash against Vietnam, the team they lost in grueling five sets in the first leg.
Meanwhile, Vietnam, which suffered their first loss 1-3 to Indonesia on Monday, had their sights firmly set on winning the Saturday’s match against Thailand, which fielded their second string as their strongest squad are in Qatar for the FIVB Volleyball Challenger Cup.
Against Thailand, spearheaded by experienced seniors including Wanchai Tabwises and Nantawut Taengkrathok and U21 star spikers including Jakkrit Thanomnoi and Supakorn Jenthaisong, Vietnam made a strong start to take the first two sets 25-20, 25-19.
The third set saw Thailand improve on their defence with a spectacular series of consecutive points, thanks to Jakkrit’s exceptional attacks and their effective blocks, to catch up at 23-23. The Vietnamese had a chance to end the Thai challenge within…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Asian Volleyball Confederation…